NBA commissioner David Stern is usually on top of things. If something's a serious problem in his league, Stern at least addresses it. For many basketball fans, it was refreshing to see him address a problem that's becoming all too common in the NBA—flopping. No, we're not talking about a bad television show flopping. We're talking about literally, physically, flopping.

Stern said that he thinks flopping or “faking/overselling of fouls” and the reaction to them is a growing problem in the NBA. Players that take bumps more unrealistic than WWE's John Cena could have to play by a new set of rules now that the NBA looks to crack down. “(Flopping is) not a legitimate play in my judgment,” Stern said to the media this past weekend.” I recognize if there's contact (you) move a little bit, but some of this is acting. We should give out Oscars rather than MVP trophies.”

Those are strong words from the commissioner. Basketball, especially during the NBA Playoffs, is a more physical game than some give it credit for. Players ball hard and with the NBA cracking down on flopping, it would prevent delaying games with bad foul calls. It would also help the NBA's perception that you can get a foul call by simply exaggerating a bump. This can only be a good thing for the NBA, right? Or will it be too difficult for officials to tell what's a flop or not?

Part of being an NBA player is learning how to draw fouls.. listen to the announcers.. they (players) do it ALL THE TIME..and if your a good actor.. guess what you can score points that way. All anyone really needs to do is watch the last minute of any game.. and how can 5 seconds of a game last a half an hour..

It is an epidemic that is being picked up everywhere in Basketball. Case in point, review the college games, especially "some" of the women's teams. They can't walk down the court without falling down, grabbing some part of their body, wincing in total pain, and when the foul is called, they miraculously recover and start playing again. It's almost as if they are coached to do this.

And while I think it would be a bad idea to penalize players for overacting, having the commissioner address the issue probably will affect how the referees react to such theater.

What might be better than a penalty is for every flop, the refs to hand a flopper a small pink "friendship bracelet" string that a player must wear on his arm for the rest of the game so everyone knows he's just a crybaby! Perhaps with the combination of flopping failing to impress the refs and fan/player disdain at being a whiner, the practice will be greatly reduced.

Sometimes you have to flop to get a referee to make a call on one of the "stars". Look at Zach Randolph. He knocks people down and there's nary a foul called. Shaq made a lackluster career out of knocking people down, dunking over them and then strutting down the floor like he was a real All-Star. He couldn't make a shot farther that 5' away!fthe

Floppers are simply trying to gain a competitive advantage... is it different than when a batter fakes getting hit with a pitch? Or a football player acts like he is being held? Refs know who flops... do they miss it sometimes? Sure, but it's part of the game.

I'm not a fan of the Heat at all. This was also the game they lost to the Bulls. Sadly, The Bulls were riddled with injuries. If they weren't injured so much they would have advanced. That's just how I feel. I have my sights set on the Lakers and the Bulls this year but oh well.